Barmuda

Scores:
Coffee: 15/20

Whole experience (cafe + coffee): 29/40

A rare sunny weekend morning brings me to Barmuda on Australia Street, right near Black Star Bakery - if street names are not your thing.

Barmuda is a café I think in my head and on paper, I have reviewed about 5 times, however, I have no idea why it has just never gotten up onto the blog. I do simply love the place and would class it as one of my weekend morning go-tos’. Nerd two may also play a role in this, as this would be, one of her favourite cafes in Sydney.

Sunday: Nerd 2 and myself arrive at about 11am, and the place is simply pumping. Staff flying everywhere, people eyeing off street side tables, prams wheeling all over the place. Barmuda is always crowed and popular, however don’t get intimidated by this activity - walk inside and ask if any tables up stairs are free.

Upstairs is a world away it’s a quiet area, far more fitting for any hangovers one may have picked up the night previously. However, a warning here, service can be questionable well away from the action, so keep this in mind.

We scored a window seat in the corner and nerd 2 instantly pick up her book, where as I became a bit  (more) of a loser and pulled out my laptop.  

Just looking around it’s easy to spot the café regular. Newtowners - couples and singles, old and young. This is not so much the tourist (non-locals) café but more the regular weekend kitchen. This is always a good sign.  

The staff today were super efficient and upon sitting down only moments later we were asked what coffee we were looking for. I made my order and a flat white was soon on its way. This great service, I should point out, may not always be the case for you when you come here. But for consistency’s sake and living in the moment I will score this one on the amazing staff effort today - so yay Barmuda!

With the coffee’s arrival, I had to make my difficult breakfast selection. After much debate and angst I ordered an amazing sounding omelette, with chorizo, olives, tomato and so on. The Planet Newtown breakfast however is a must for the virgin Barmuder, which must be one of Sydney’s better big breakfasts. Nerd two went for a roasted pumpkin salad thing, which was also very tasty (I stole bits of her meal as we ate, so can confirm this).

So onto the coffee. The coffee here is quite pleasant in it’s aroma, it’s rich, sweet and delicate with a bit of a medium kick. The smell has this interesting berry sweatiness to it, which to my nose is not something I can readily put my finger on.

Presentation wise, some effort went into its creation, it’s a good-looking coffee. Heat wise, I don’t mind a drinkable on arrival coffee, however I know some may feel the heat in the coffee a little lacking. In saying that though their long black (which I ordered later) is presented beautifully, with a most white crema and heat, well it’s hard to stuff up hot water.

Taste wise the coffee flavours are dominated by cocoa (almost to a dark chocolate) and slight earthiness. This earthiness often seems to hit after the fact and not with any consistency, however this does give it some charm. Having had a few coffees here I would recommend that whist flat whites or lattes are often a drink of choice to many. I find often the delicate flavours thrive in the long black.

When letting it cool, that nice sweet fruity dark chocolate flavour really starts to come into command, that earthiness just melts away. The drink I think tastes like dark chocolate mixed with watermelon, funky!

Overall, Barmuda has been consistent in Newtown, whist it has gone though a plethora of owners and staff, its consistency, charm and style have as of yet not gone out of fashion. Its street like presence, charming staff and community feel draw in many a person. And whilst may of you may have some issues with the coffee, whether that be it is a little too cool on arrival, to delicate and not as consistent sip by sip. I actually quite love its almost sporadic nature and delicate charm.

Scores:
1. Coffee score
Style (look and feel): 8/10
Experience (taste and smell): 7/10
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Coffee total: 15/20
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2. Cafe score 
Style (what’s it feel like): local hang out
Cool?: 7/10
Service: 7/10
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Cafe: 14/20
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Whole experience (coffee + cafe): 29/40

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David Jones Espresso Bar

Scores:

Coffee: 8/20

Whole experience (cafe + coffee): 18/40

Bean: Vittoria

Saturday: Home to all things somewhat classy, I decided on a wet Saturday morning to give the David Jones Espresso Bar (CBD) a try. Found in the Food Hall under Market Street (the men’s store) the Food Hall is hive of interesting food and random products.

The Espresso Bar, from first sight promises to be a yester-year experience. The floor is tilled in those interesting small mosaic patterns; there is that classic 1940-60’s sexy green leather on the seats and what every experience needs, a nice long bar made from white marble, with hooks for your hat or jacket beside each seat. In fact if you research it a bit, this spot is the home to one of Sydney’s first espresso machines (1955, the first was 1952). However, this, I’m afraid, is where the experience goes lop-sided.

I grab a seat at the bar, and quickly notice a sign ‘service only at registerer’ or something to that effect, odd, for a high-class experience. Upon going up to the till I find the staff, uninterested and almost aggressive in taking my order (although I was annoying and asked them which bean they were using). I ordered a long black, and a number was given to me.

The bar attracts a different sort of person then I usually experience in my coffee drinking, it’s a far older crowd here and they are typically far more open for a chat about their coffee. On this thought I asked a nice couple beside me about their coffee and why they came here, they replied they enjoyed coming back to a place which they have fond memories for.

The coffee took a ridiculously long time to make it to me, and when it did, it was flat and disappointing. Served with a plastic spoon, yesteryear became more a modern cheap café experience, more what you would find at an airport café then in a food hall. The crema was a little thin and heat of the coffee questionable, even for a long black.

The aroma is that rich dark, slightly sweet roasted Italian coffee smell, which we all knows sits with a classic Vittoria product. I am told that the espresso bar typically uses a special Vittoria blend. However, the bags in the bin and the taste and smell looks like and smelt the normal blend, which is not to bad, but just not that exciting.

Taste wise, this coffee also fitted into that traditional Vittoria blend/ drink. Dark, bold a little fruity (more a berry) taste, it was smooth, non-bitter and rather bland, without any exciting about it. I also thought that perhaps the coffee tasted a little stale, but that could have just been the underwhelming experience I was tasting.

Overall, this whole experience made me (and my fellow partitions, who I talked to) quite sad. With such a lovey location, with such a grand history, this place should be more mecca for us coffee nerds, but sadly its just relic of something special. David Jones, please ditch the coffee beans get some eccentric baristas in and ditch the plastic spoons.

Scores:

1. Coffee score

Style (look and feel): 4/10

Experience (taste and smell): 4/10

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Coffee total: 8/20

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2. Cafe score 

Style (what’s it feel like): A rundown yesteryear coffee experience, could be a New York Madmen event

Cool?: 6/10

Service: 4/10

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Cafe: 10/20

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Whole experience (coffee + cafe): 18/40

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Olio

Scores:

Coffe: 13/20

Whole experience (cafe + coffee): 24/40

Bean: Sam Di Gabrielian of Di Gabriel (Olio blend)

Wednesday: In a courtyard mostly void of good-looking options, I start my Wednesday morning at Olio, at St Leonards’ Forum building.  I’ve been working in the lower North Shore for about a month now, and as you may have gathered from the slowing down of my posts. Firstly, I have access to my own coffee machine at work. And secondly, and more importantly, there are no exciting coffee shop options that really drive my desire to check them out!

Olio, is an exception to this, from first impressions it has a certain classiness to it (perhaps in part from the lack of options), but also from the way it presents itself, it’s trying to be something different - part wine bar, part coffee shop, part restaurant, doing a bit of everything, really because no one is doing anything of the above.

Olio in the mornings is mostly empty, but there is enough of a buzz of early breakfast types and office workers grabbing a coffee on the go to make this café feel alive. Interesting to note the café has morning news TV going to keep us serious non-city workers in the ‘loop’. Interesting to see cafes with TVs into their shops.

I have come here twice now and both times something unusual happens when sitting down. When it comes to the order (service is fast here I should note) and I say “flat white” or “long black” and the staff member stares at me in shock. “Just a coffee?!” - is written all over their face. Leafy lower north shore just does not seem to get the sit-in coffee with no meal thing.

The coffee, on both occasions arrived in a reasonable time. That’s a good thing around here, as it means that the coffee shop can capture some sit in coffee market (if it exists) from busy lower north shore persons.

So checking out the coffee. The flat white’s aroma is complex thing. It is rich and dark with some smoky and toffee flavours hidden within it. Style wise, it looks cool, some nice art happening here, although this does not seem to be consistent, with some coffees coming out looking a little bland.

Upon tasting it I find it far smoother in taste then the smell would have hinted at. It is a very creamy drink, with more a medium then dark roast flavour. The drink also hides an interesting cocoa earthiness to its aftertaste, which again is pleasantly unexpected.

Letting it sit brings out a bit of a nutty (almond?) flavour, which balances well with the cocoa and toffee flavours that tended to dominant on its arrival.

Also should quickly note here that for the organic lovers, this coffee gets a tick. It’s an interesting blend with beans sourced from all over the place - all organic in origin.

Overall, I like Olio, it’s a little bit poncy and snooty, but then again that’s what the area needs to make a place standout. The Forum’s architecture just does not encourage that cool inner-city thing. But then again I’m not in the inner west or east. For pure feel and for the fact that I can be left alone if with a little struggle to my order, the café wins some marks.

I should note Olio might ring some coffee alarm bells, as it offers (I assume still) a 9-dollar coffee (Kopi Luwak) produced by a wild cat’s (or rodent’s) gut. I love the fact that a coffee shop in his area can do that and I’ll investigate in future as to whether or not this is still a deal here.

Scores:

1. Coffee score

Style (look and feel): 7/10

Experience (taste and smell): 6/10
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Coffee total: 13/20
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2. Cafe score 

Style (what’s it feel like): Mediterranean restaurant - come wine bar - come café – come everything

Cool?: 5/10

Service: 6/10

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Cafe: 11/20

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Whole experience (coffee + cafe): 24/40

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